- organizes mock-CBT for 1m JAMB candidates
From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
Athena and Educare, two promoters of technology in education, have advocated deeper integration of Computer-Based Testing (CBT) into the activities of students in basic schools.
They said that such early exposure of the children to the computer and technology will enable them conquer fear and anxiety, thus strengthening their confidence to participate in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and other computer-based tests for either employment opportunities in the future or other assessments.
Founder and Chancellor of the Athena Centre, Chief Osita Chidoka, in his submissions at a discussion on mainstreaming Computer-Based Testing (CBT) in Nigeria’s education system in Abuja, on Monday, said the result of their independent investigation and interaction with basic school children in two local governments in Anambra State indicated that lots of the children are not acquainted with computers hence they get frightened whenever they are face-to-face with computers.
He said the interest of Athena Centre is to bridge the preparation gap for candidates that would participate in UTME being organized by Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) annually by, at least, reaching out to one million students nationwide with toolkits that would build their confidence before the commencement of 2024 UTME.
He said: “We want to see these children get acquainted with these devices before it’s the future of the world. It might be late for lots of candidates that would participate in the 2024 UTME exercise, but we have to start somewhere. Perfection is the enemy of the good. What we learn from this year’s exercise will shape the decisions and activities of next year.
“Computer-based testing is the way to go. It is the future of the country and world, but we need to intensify the campaign for more people to embrace it. JAMB started the CBT despite the huge resistance but they maintained their stand, and today, the country is better off. The integrity and credibility of JAMB has improved significantly as a result of deployment of CBT. Other examination bodies as well as institutions like INEC can emulate that.
“We need to dig deeper into how to mainstream CBT into our basic schools, and failure to do that will continue to give us the poor results that we are getting. And not just the poor results, we would continue to bring a generation of Nigerians who do not have the skills for the global community”.
Chinwe Okoli, who represented Anambra State Governor at that discussion, highlighted how the deployment of technology has redefined education in the state, equipping the children with skills and knowledge for 21st century technology driven world.
She restated the commitment of the state government to making the state the “Silicon Valley” of Nigeria, by building and supporting start-ups that would redefine global economy, IT, security and general lifestyle.
She said the state government established the Solution Innovation District (SID) as a place of creativity and empowerment for young entrepreneurs particularly in ICT, stressing that it has been impactful and gainful for the young Anambra entrepreneurs.
Chief Executive Officer of Educare, Alex Onyia, in his submissions, said the successful collaboration with Athena Centre resulted in the deployment of the CBT testing for senior secondary school students at some local governments in Anambra State.
He said the outcome of the test indicated that large number of students were being exposed to computers for the first time in their life, stressing that such experience could affect the confidence and chances of students to participate in UTME or other tests which that are strictly CBT.
He, however, appreciated the opportunity provided by the partnership to get over 1m UTME candidates properly exposed and acquainted with computer and CBT testings which would significantly improve their performance at the UTME.
Governors of Kaduna, Plateau and Anambra States, who attended the hybrid event assured that they would partner with critical stakeholders in their states to expand CBT activities.